Method for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier, apparatus for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier and instruction to be executed by the apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus is described for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier ( 40 ), comprising a first ( 10 ) and a second module ( 20 ). The first module ( 10 ) is arranged for: receiving information that specifies the visually detectable pattern, issuing a request to the second module to provide indications, indicative for capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, issuing instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the received information, depending on the indicated capabilities of recording, and wherein the second module ( 20 ) is arranged for providing the requested indications, and generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier ( 40 ) using the issued instructions.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the priority benefit of Coopmans et al., U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/954,490, filed on Aug. 7, 2007, the contents of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, including any references contained therein.

This application relates to Timmermans et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Ref. No. 264273) filed on Aug. 7, 2008, which is the non-provisional of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/954,520 filed on Aug. 7, 2007, both of which are entitled “Optical Record Carrier With A Visually Detectable Pattern As Well As An Apparatus And A Method For Recording A visually Detectable Pattern On An Optical Record Carrier.”

This Application relates to Maarten et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Ref. No. 264272) filed on Aug. 7, 2008, which is the non-provisional of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/954,494 filed on Aug. 7, 2007, both of which are entitled “Optical Record Carrier, As Well As A Method And An Apparatus For Recording A Disc Shaped Optical Record Carrier.”

The disclosures of the above-identified related provisional and non-provisional applications are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entirety including the disclosure of any references contained therein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier. The present invention further relates to an apparatus for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier. The present invention further relates to instructions for execution by the apparatus.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

US Published Application 2004/0062179 describes an optical disc recording apparatus capable of forming a visible image on an optical disc. This capability will also be denoted herein below as LabelPrint. The visible image comprises for example a logo, a sequence of characters, or a combination thereof. The visually detectable pattern is printed at a resolution suitable for detection by a human visual system. For example the visually detectable pattern may be printed at a resolution of 1 to several hundreds dots per mm² (as compared to computer readable data, which is stored at the record carrier at a resolution in the order of several Mbits/mm²). The computer readable data is usually stored in the form of marks in the same recording layer and is preferably encoded by means of a channel code.

In this way a user does not need a reading device to recognize the contents of the optical disk. A simple visual inspection suffices. The visible image can be written to the disk substantially with the same means that are used for writing a computer readable data to the disc.

Means for applying machine readable data to an optical record carrier usually comprise a higher level application, e.g. NERO Xpress carried out at a host processor that communicates with a command set to a lower level driver that, in turn, controls the hardware that executes the recording process.

The hardware may comprise a write head for providing a controlled beam of radiation to the record carrier, a facility for causing a relative movement between the record carrier and the write head, and a facility for controlling the intensity of the beam of radiation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a purpose to provide instructions that enable a higher level application to reuse (use) the existing lower level driver for forming a visible image on an optical disc. It is a further purpose to provide a method that uses such instructions for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier. It is a still further purpose to provide an apparatus that uses such instructions for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier.

According to an aspect of the invention, a method is provided for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier, comprising the steps of:

-   -   receiving information that specifies the visually detectable         pattern,     -   issuing a request to provide indications indicative for         capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the         record carrier, the requested indications at least being         indicative for specific properties of the record carrier,     -   upon said request providing the requested indications,     -   depending on said indications, issuing instructions for applying         the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the         received information, and     -   generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier         using the issued instructions.

According to a further inventive aspect, an apparatus is provided for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier, comprising a first and a second module, the first module being arranged for:

-   -   receiving information that specifies the visually detectable         pattern,     -   issuing a request to the second module to provide indications         indicative for capabilities of recording the visually detectable         pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at         least being indicative for specific properties of the record         carrier, and     -   issuing instructions for applying the visually detectable         pattern at the record carrier using the received information,         depending on the provided indications,

the second module being arranged for:

-   -   providing the requested indications, and     -   generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier         using the issued instructions.

According to a further aspect of the invention a second module is provided that is arranged for recording a visually detectable pattern at an optical record carrier, the second module further being arranged for:

-   -   receiving a request to provide indications indicative for         capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the         record carrier, the requested indications at least being         indicative for specific properties of the record carrier,     -   providing the requested indications,     -   receiving instructions for applying the visually detectable         pattern at the record carrier, and     -   generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier         using the issued instructions.

According to a still further aspect of the invention an instruction is provided which, upon execution by a second module, causes said second module to provide indications indicative for possibilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at least being indicative for specific properties of the record carrier.

According to a still further aspect of the invention an instruction is provided which, upon execution, causes a second module (as specified in claim 2) to select a printing mode for printing a visually detectable pattern at an optical record carrier. As the lower level driver provides the requested indications about the properties of the record carrier, this enables the higher level application to perform a coordinate transformation from an internally determined coordinate system to the coordinate system determined by the tracks on the record carrier. This transformation is described in detail in the Appendix section herein below.

The instructions make it possible to effectively instruct a driver of an apparatus for recording an optical record carrier to record a visually detectable pattern, therewith taking into account the type of disc used CD-R/RW, DVD+/-R, DVD+/-RW BD-R/RE, HD-DVD-R/RW/RAM etc., and the recording options of the drive for such disc. Alternatively, the optical record carrier may be another medium that can be read out with optical means, e.g. an optical card.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects of the invention are described in more detail with reference to the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a general overview of the system comprising a record carrier and an apparatus for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier,

FIG. 2 shows the system of FIG. 1 with a part thereof in more detail,

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a method for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier,

FIG. 4 shows an example of a user interface,

FIG. 5 shows tracking on a dual layer disc,

FIG. 6 shows Physical Sector Numbers PSN_start and PSN_stop defining a visual image window PSN_window, and

FIG. 7 shows start and stop control for recording one image line.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a general overview of the system comprising a record carrier 40 and an apparatus for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier. The apparatus comprises a host processor 10 and a drive 20 that communicate with each other with a command set. The host processor 10 carries out a first process (user application) that generates an image to be printed at the record carrier 40. The image may, for example, comprise a logo or a text comprising a sequence of characters.

A print engine may transform the image. The transformation is dependent on the shape of the record carrier (e.g. circular or rectangular) and the desired location (at a central portion of the disc or more on the periphery) on the record carrier where the image is to be printed as a visually detectable pattern. The print engine communicates with the drive 20 in order to have it print the transformed image at the record carrier 40.

FIG. 2 shows the system of FIG. 1 with the drive 20 in more detail. As shown therein the drive 20 comprises a read/write head 21 to read optically detectable information from the record carrier 40 and to provide an output signal representative for the information read from the record carrier to an RF processing circuit 26. The read/write head 21 is movable relative to the record carrier 40 by means comprising a spindle motor 22 for rotating the record carrier 40 and further means, e.g. a slide and a radial actuator (not shown) for radially displacing the read/write head 21 relative to the record carrier 40. The relative movement of the read/write head 21 with respect to the record carrier 40 is controlled by a servo circuit 23. The RF processing circuit 26 decomposes the signal obtained from the read/write head 21 into a first output signal that is provided to a decoder circuit 27, which decodes the first output signal into a digital signal representative for the data stored on the record carrier 40. The RF processing circuit provides a second output signal to an address detection circuit 29 that determines the address at the record carrier that is currently accessed by the read/write head 21. The data obtained by decoder circuit 27 and the address determined by address detection circuit 29 is provided to general controller 32. With this information the controller 32 controls the servo circuit 23.

Data is written on the record carrier 40 by an encoder 30, strategy unit 31, a driver 24 and the read/write head 21. The data to be written is encoded by encoder 30. The encoding may include an error protection encoding (e.g. Reed-Solomon) and a channel encoding (e.g. an EFM coding). The encoded signal is provided to the strategy unit 31 that calculates a required modulation of a signal to be sent to the read/write head in order to optimally represent the encoded signal. This is dependent on the type of record carrier used, e.g. whether the record carrier comprises an active layer on the basis of a phase change material, a dye etc. The encoder 30 may be bypassed, in which case the strategy unit 31 is directly driven by the general controller 32.

The driver 24 converts the output signal into a signal suitable to drive a write facility of the read/write head. Usually the write facility comprises a laser plus lens system for providing a focused beam on the record carrier 40. The actual power applied to the write facility is further regulated by a laser power controller 25. The laser power controller 25 monitors the intensity of the laser beam in response to the signal provided by the driver 24 and adjusts the driver to compensate for temperature changes and temporal deterioration of the laser in the read/write head.

A method used in practice to control a (lower level) drive or second module by a (higher level) application or first module is by the exchange of MMC commands.

The information is exchanged between the host and the drive via a set of LabelPrint specific commands and/or extensions to existing commands.

The disclosed embodiments facilitate the following improvements.

1. With one command, the application is notified of the LabelPrint capability of the drive.

2. An application accesses a medium via Logical Block Addresses, or LBA's. However, this information does not give a user insight in the amount of space in mm² that would be required to store a visible image at a certain radius on the medium. The invention provides a means for an application to allow a user to specify the PSN's (physical sector numbers) where the image should be located.

3. With one command all relevant image data is uploaded to the drive.

EMBODIMENT 1 GET CONFIGURATION Command

MMC-6 uses features to report capabilities of an optical disc drive to the application. Features are reported to the application via the GET CONFIGURATION command. Depending on the mounted medium, a feature may be current or not current. For the capability to write a visually detectable pattern at the record carrier (LabelPrint functionality), a new feature is introduced, as shown in Table 1.

TABLE 1 The Feature code for the LabelWrite function. Feature Code Feature Name Description FF22h LabelWrite The ability to write a visible image on a selectable location on the data side of a medium.

Table 2 shows an example of a suitable LabelPrint Feature descriptor format.

TABLE 2 LabelWrite Feature descriptor format Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 (MSB) Feature Code = FF22h (LSB) 1 2 Reserved Version Persist Current 3 Additional Length = 4 4 PRINT Opcode 5 LabelWrite Media Parameters page number 6 LabelWrite image Location Parameters page number 7 Reserved

Therein the entries have the following meaning.

Version

This indicates the version of the feature. The initial version is 1.

Persist

This indicates if the feature is always available. This shall be zero, as the feature is not available when no medium is mounted or medium is mounted for which writing of a visually detectable pattern is not supported.

Current

This indicates if the feature is currently active. This will be set to 1 when a medium onto which a visible image may be written is currently mounted.

PRINT Opcode

This field specifies the vendor unique operation code that this drive uses for the visible image PRINT command. The value FDh must be used unless there is a conflict with another vendor-specific operation code.

LabelPrint Media Parameters Page Number

This field specifies the vendor unique mode page that this drive uses for the LabelPrint Media Parameters mode page for the MODE SENSE and MODE SELECT commands. The value 40h must be used unless there is a conflict with another vendor-specific mode page.

LabelPrint Image Location Parameters Page Number

This field specifies the vendor unique mode page that this drive uses for the LabelPrint Image Location Parameters mode page for the MODE SENSE and MODE SELECT commands. The value 41h must be used unless there is a conflict with another vendor-specific mode page.

MMC-6 uses mode pages to exchange drive or media specific parameters. The MODE SENSE command allows an application to query the drive for current settings and to check which of the settings can be changed. The MODE SELECT command allows an application to change settings.

Information to be exchanged is twofold:

1. Properties of the medium.

2. Location of the image.

For both types of information, a new mode page is introduced as shown in Table 3.

TABLE 3 Introduction of new Mode Pages for LabelWrite Drive capabilities and Media Properties Page Code Data Description 40h LBW Media The properties of the medium Parameters related to LabelWrite functionality. 41h LBW Image Location The specification of the location Parameters for the visible image.

EMBODIMENT 2 LBW Media Parameters Mode Page

Via the LBW Media Parameters Mode Page, media parameters that are relevant for the LabelPrint function are transferred to the application. The parameters depend on the type of medium on which a visible image will be written. They cannot be changed. An application can use the information in this Mode Page together with the calculation according to the Appendix for a meaningful dialog with the end user. A Specification of the LBW Media Parameters Mode Page is shown in Table 4.

TABLE 4 Specification of the LBW Media Parameters Mode Page Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 PS = 0 Reserved Page Code (40h) 1 Page Length (12h) 2 Reserved 3 Reserved Path 4 (MSB) Track Pitch (LSB) 5 6 7 8 (MSB) PSN Length (LSB) 9 10 11 12 Reserved Layer1 Layer0 13 Reserved 14 (MSB) Tangential Resolution (LSB) 15 The entries therein have the following meaning.

Path

This field is only applicable for dual layer discs. If Path is zero, the disc is an OTP (Opposite Track Path) disc. If Path is one, the disc is a PTP (Parallel Track Path) disc. This is relevant for the application to know, as image lines must be passed to the drive in tracking direction.

Track Pitch

The Track Pitch specifies the distance between two adjacent tracks on the medium. The Track Pitch unity is nanometers.

PSN Length

The PSN Length is the length (in micrometers) that one PSN, which is a sector or 2048 bytes of user data, occupies on a medium.

Layer1, Layer0

An indication whether a visible image can be recorded on the indicated layer. A bit set to zero indicates that an image cannot be recorded on the given layer. A bit set to one indicates that an image can be recorded on the given layer.

Tangential Resolution

The tangential resolution specifies the number of pixels that can be recorded around the circumference of the disc. This number remains constant, so the tangential size of the pixel grows towards the outer diameter of the disc. Divided by eight, this is the number of bytes that shall be transferred for each image line in the PRINT command.

EMBODIMENT 3 LBW Image Location Parameters Mode Page

The Image Location Parameters mode page (shown in Table 5) is used to specify where the image will be recorded, and how many image lines will be provided by the application.

TABLE 5 Specification of the LBW Image Location Parameters Mode Page 0 PS = 0 Reserved Page Code (41h) 1 Page Length = 12 2 Reserved 3 Reserved 4 (MSB) Image Start PSN (LSB) 5 6 7 6 (MSB) Image Stop PSN (LSB) 7 8 9 10 (MSB) Lines in Image (LSB) 11 With this information, the drive is able to calculate the number of tracks it must write for one image line. The entries therein have the following meaning:

Image Start PSN

This is the start PSN where the image will be recorded.

Image Stop PSN

This is the stop PSN where the image will be recorded.

Lines in Image

This is the total number of image lines that constitute the visible image.

EMBODIMENT 4 PRINT Command

Pixel data describing the number of pixels per image line is sent to the drive via the PRINT command (shown in Table 6).

TABLE 6 Specification of the PRINT command Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 Operation Code (FDh) 1 Version 2 Reserved 3 Reserved 4 Reserved 5 (MSB) Parameter List Length (LSB) 6 7 8 9 Control With one print command, the data of one or more image lines may be sent to the drive. From the settings in the LBW Image Location Parameters mode page, the drive is able to calculate exactly where the image shall be recorded and how many tracks constitute an image line. Entries therein have the following meaning:

Version

This field specifies the version number of the PRINT command CDB and the PRINT data format. This affects how the data fields are interpreted. The initial version number is 1.

Parameter List Length

This field indicates the length in bytes of the print data.

PRINT Data Format

A practical implementation of the PRINT Data Format is shown in Table 7.

TABLE 7 Specifications of the PRINT data format Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 (MSB) Number of Image Lines (LSB) 1 2 (MSB) Image Line Number (LSB) 3 4 (MSB) Number of Pixel data bytes (N) (LSB) 5 6 First pixel data byte 7 Second pixel data byte . . . 6 + N (MSB) Image Line Number (LSB) 6 + N + 1 6 + N + 2 (MSB) Number of Pixel data bytes (N) (LSB) 6 + N + 3 6 + N + 4 First pixel data byte 6 + N + 5 Second pixel data byte . . . . . . 6 + N + N + 4 Last pixel data byte Entries therein have the following meaning.

Number of Image Lines

This is the number of image lines in this PRINT data format block.

Image Line Number

This is the image line number corresponding to the data. Lines are numbered from zero in the tracking direction. On single layer discs, this means that image lines are uploaded to the drive from the inside to the outside. On dual layer OTP (Opposite Track Path) discs, this means that image lines are uploaded to the drive from the outside to the inside for layer L1. On dual layer PTP (Parallel Track Path) discs, this means that image lines are also uploaded from the inside to the outside of the disc for layer L1. This is visualized in FIG. 5.

As not all image lines may be uploaded to the drive in one single PRINT command, the first Image Line number may not be zero. In that case, the Image Line Number should be the number following the last Image Line number in the previous PRINT command.

Number of Pixel Data Bytes

This is the number of bytes that constitute all pixels within one image line. Each byte holds eight pixels. The most significant bit will be recorded first. This is visualized in FIG. 5.

EMBODIMENT 5 Command Sequence

A typical sequence of commands as sent by the application is given below. This shows the command sequence for the situation where the image is located directly adjacent to the last session of a finalized disc.

1. Send Get Configuration command to the drive when no medium is mounted

2. Send Start/Stop Unit command to the drive to eject the tray

3 . . . . insert DVD+/-R medium

4. Send Start/Stop Unit command to the drive to close the tray and mount the medium

5. Send Get Configuration command to the drive when the medium is mounted

6. Send Mode Sense command to the drive to obtain the current settings in the LBW Media Parameters mode page.

7 . . . . Application executes dialogue with the user what data to write and if a visible image is to be recorded

8. Send Write(10) commands to the drive to upload user data

9. Send Close Track/Session command to the drive to close the session containing the user data and finalize the disc.

10 . . . . Convert text/image to be recorded as visually detectable pattern into number of image lines and pixels per image line

11. Send Mode Select to the drive to transfer LBW Image Location Parameters mode page to the drive.

12. Send PRINT commands to the drive to upload the visible image data.

13. Send Start/Stop Unit command to the drive to eject the tray.

The LabelPrint Feature descriptor format shown in table 2 may be extended with additional feature Label Print Drive capabilities as shown in Table 9

TABLE 9 LabelWrite feature descriptor format extended Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 (MSB) Feature Code = FF22h (LSB) 1 2 Reserved Version Persist Current 3 Additional Length = 4 4 PRINT Opcode 5 LBW Image Location Parameters page number 6 LBW Media Parameters page number 7 LBW Drive Capabilities page number

LBW Drive Capabilities Page Number

This field specifies the vendor unique mode page that this drive uses for the Label Print Drive Capabilities mode page for the MODE SENSE and MODE SELECT commands. The value 42h must be used unless there is a conflict with another vendor-specific mode page.

EMBODIMENT 6 LBW Drive Capabilities Mode Page

The LBW Drive Capabilities Mode Page is shown in Table 10.

TABLE 10 Specification of the LBW drive capabilities mode page Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 PS = 0 Reserved Page Code (42h) 1 Page Length 2 Current Recording Method 3 Number of Recording Methods (n) 4 Recording Method Descriptor 0 5 . . . . . . . . . 2n + 4 Recording Method Descriptor n 2n + 5

The entries therein have the following meaning:

Page Length

The Page Length specifies the number of bytes that follow. The number is equal to n*2+2, where n equals the Number of Recording Methods.

Current Recording Method

This field shall have a number 0 to n, to indicate the currently selected Recording Method Descriptor.

Number of Recording Methods

This field specifies the number of Recording Method Descriptors that follow.

Recording Method Descriptor

An example of a recording method descriptor is shown in Table 11.

TABLE 11 Specification of the recording method descriptor Bit Byte 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 Recording Method 1 Reserved Contrast Enhancement Method Overwrite Capability Therein the recording method describes the physical method how the image is recorded on the recording layer of the medium. Different recording methods are specified in Table 12.

TABLE 12 Recording method field definitions RECORDING METHOD DESCRIPTION 00h DC Power 01h Run Length Pattern Modulation within physical book specification 02h Run Length Pattern Modulation violating physical book specification 03h Reserved

The Contrast Enhancement Method describes how an improvement of the contrast is realized. Different methods are specified in Table 13.

TABLE 13 Contrast enhancement method field definitions Contrast Enhancement Method Description 00h None 01h Increased Power 02h Record twice 03h Record in between the grooves 04h-0Fh Reserved

For Rewritable media, the recording method that is used to record the image may have a negative effect on the possibility to overwrite the area when the disc is being re-initialized. Different possibilities for overwriting (overwrite capability) are specified in Table 14.

TABLE 14 Overwrite capability field definitions Overwrite Capability Description 00h Possible 01h Not recommended 02h Not possible 03h Reserved

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a method for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier in which the extended command set is applied. The method comprises the steps of:

-   -   issuing a request for providing indications, indicative for         possibilities of recording a visually detectable pattern at a         record carrier, (first Get Configuration, general possibility of         the drive) By this command the application requests all features         of the drive, not specific to a particular type of record         carrier.     -   issuing a request for providing indications, indicative for         possibilities of recording a visually detectable pattern at the         record carrier, (second Get Configuration, specific possibility         of the drive, related to the currently mounted record carrier)         With this command the application requests the specific features         for the record carrier currently present in the drive.         Alternatively the application may have a command for requesting         both the available features for a specific record carrier and         the general features of the drive.     -   Issuing a request for providing media specific parameters (first         Mode sense) With this command the application requests         information necessary to calculate the required area to write         the visually detectable pattern on the disc.     -   receiving information that specifies the visually detectable         pattern, (See FIG. 4, for more detail)     -   optionally the application may issue a request for providing         indications, indicative for possibilities of recording the         visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, (second Mode         sense). Drive capabilities may be contrast enhancement e.g.         printing with increased power, printing more than once and         printing between tracks. Alternatively the drive may have a         single recording method for recording the visually detectable         pattern.     -   If applicable, upon said request providing the requested         indications (Drive capabilities).     -   if applicable, depending on said indications issuing         instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the         record carrier using the received information (Mode select:         preferred recording method; If the drive has only one recording         method for the visually detectable pattern, or if the drive         provides for more than one recording method but the desired         recording method is the default recording method then this mode         select instruction is superfluous. (Mode select: transfer         location parameters, upload pattern data)         -   The preferred recording method may be selected from at least             applying a run length modulation complying with the             specification for the run length modulation specified for             machine readable data recorded on the disk, applying another             run length modulation, printing the pattern without run             length modulation.

The list of recording methods may further include a method for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement and indicating the desired type of contrast enhancement

-   -   generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier         using the issued instructions.

FIG. 4 shows a practical embodiment of a user interface for requesting a user to provide information for related to the visually detectable pattern to be printed.

With a first selection box (Enable LabelPrint) the user can enable or disable the feature of writing a visually detectable pattern to the disc.

With a second selection box (Enable high contrast) the user can increase the visible contrast, for example by using a twice time slower recording mode.

In case of rewritable record carriers, it can be indicated with “Replace data” whether the original data should be moved to another empty location of the disc. In case of a text-TAG, this information can also be edited as the data itself is stored on the disc too, which is the subject of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Ref. No. 264273) filed on Aug. 7, 2008, which is the non-provisional of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/954,520 filed on Aug. 7, 2007, both of which are entitled “Optical Record Carrier With A Visually Detectable Pattern As Well As An Apparatus And A Method For Recording A visually Detectable Pattern On An Optical Record Carrier.”

The user can select a font, e.g. Arial and a location for the label. In most user cases, the label can be placed on any available location, but inside is preferred because it consumes the least capacity per character height

With a further selection box (Auto generate text) the user can select the option to have the label generated automatically. For example, in frequent cases the label only contains the disc creation data and the main file type like jps indicating that the record carrier contains photos. In that case the automatically generated is label is for example: “photos Mar. 15, 2007”

If the content for the label is not automatically generated the user can for example specify a text below “My text:”

If the content for the label is not automatically generated the user can for example specify a text below “My text:”

In the apparatus as described in the previous section a facility for receiving information that specifies the visually detectable pattern is a first process being executed on the host processor 10 that controls the user interface as shown in FIG. 4. Although such a software implementation is preferable, it may alternatively be implemented as dedicated hardware. A software implementation has the advantage however that it can easily be updated and improved.

A facility for issuing a request to the second module to provide indications is a second process executed on the host processor that communicates via a communication protocol e.g. PCI with the controller 32 of the second module 20. To that end the host processor has a communication port 12 and the general controller of the second module or drive 20 has a communication port 36.

A facility for issuing instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern is a third process executed on the host processor 10 that also communicates via said communication protocol with the controller 32 of the second module 20.

A facility for providing the requested indications is comprised in the second module 20 as the general controller 32. The general controller 32 has a facility to receive a request in the form of an instruction decoder capable of recognizing the instruction with the request to provide indications. When the instruction decoder identifies the instruction with the request to provide indications it initializes firmware that activates the second module to determine the record carrier properties, such as track pitch, the type of material for the recording layer 41 etc.

The components in the second module 20 forming the facility for generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier 40 are substantially the same as those used for recording machine readable data. As for the machine readable data the visually detectable pattern is generated at the recording layer 41 of the record carrier 40 by modulating an intensity of the laser beam from the read/write head 21 while providing a relative displacement between the read/write head 21 and the record carrier 40. Unlike the procedure for machine-readable data, the signal controlling the intensity of the laser beam need not comply with the channel code for recording machine-readable data. Hence the encoder 30 may be bypassed by bypass 35.

Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure and the appended claims. For example, although a disc shaped record carrier is described herein; other shapes are possible (e.g. record carriers in the shape of a credit card). In that example, the visually detectable pattern may for example indicate the amount of credit currently available to the user.

Various recording modes are possible at a file system level, e.g. disc at once, multi-session, sequential with or without logical overwrite and random.

Various file systems are known to the skilled person for storing data at optical record carrier, including UDF, ISO, and BDFS. On top of the file system an application may be present such as DVD-Video.

In the claims the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.

APPENDIX: ADDRESS CONVERSION

For LabelPrint the normal radial tracking control scheme is used. The location and rough start and stop position are defined in Physical Sector Numbers PSN. However, the image writing process itself is based on the disc angle αrather than the PSN. Note the Physical ADIP Address (PAA) as present in the groove guides the actual start stop process on an empty disc: PAA=PSN/8 for DVD and BD.

The application supplies the following input parameters via the MODE SELECT command (Mode Page 41h, LBW Image Location Parameters):

PSN_start

PSN_stop

num_of_image_lines

The Physical Sector Numbers PSN_start and PSN_stop define the visual image window PSN_window as shown in FIG. 6. Within this window the label may be recorded.

It is undesired that the printing of the visually detectable pattern happens outside these boundaries. For that reason a buffer is created on both edges. Also a buffer is preferred as additional run-out and run-in to protect instability when reading back the user data close to the image. Each buffer has the same width as an image line. The buffer is recorded with regular EFM or 17 pp patterns.

The num_of_image_lines defines the number of lines of the visual image. Note that within the visual image window two lines are added for the buffers.

First from PSN_start and PSN_stop the number of tracks per image line within the window is calculated as follows:

$r_{start}^{2} = {\frac{\left( {{PSN\_ start} - {PSN\_ ref}} \right) \cdot {TP}}{\pi \cdot {PSN\_ length}} + r_{ref}^{2}}$

Therein PSN_length is the length of a physical sector.

PSN_ref is the physical sector number at a predetermined reference position r_(ref) as defined in the standard.

For DVD-SL these values are available:

PSN_ref=0x30000 at r_(ref)=24 mm

$r_{stop}^{2} = {\frac{\left( {{PSN\_ stop} - {PSN\_ ref}} \right) \cdot {TP}}{\pi \cdot {PSN\_ length}} + r_{ref}^{2}}$

The number of tracks num_of_tracks occupied by the visually detectable pattern is:

${{{{num}\_ {of}}{\_ {tracks}}} = \frac{r_{stop} - r_{start}}{TP}},$

wherein TP is the track pitch.

Accordingly the number of tracks per line (num_of_tracks_per_line) is:

${{num\_ of}{\_ tracks}{\_ per}{\_ line}} = \frac{{num\_ of}{\_ tracks}}{{{num\_ of}{\_ image}{\_ lines}} + 2}$

For each line (i) each equidistant start (r_(start) _(—) _(i)) and stop radius (r_(stop) _(—) _(i)) is calculated.

r _(start) _(—) _(i) =r _(start) +TP·num_of_tracks_per_line.i

r _(stop) _(—) _(i) =r _(start) _(—) _(i)+num_of_tracks_per_line,

with the line number i=[1, 2, 3 . . . num_of image_lines].

In a favorable embodiment lines i=0 and i=num_of_image_lines+1 are reserved as a buffer zone.

The approximate start (PSN_start_i) and stop position (PSN_stop_i) of each line in PSN coordinates is found by:

$\begin{matrix} {{{PSN\_ start}{\_ i}} = {{PSN\_ start} + \frac{\pi \left( {r_{start\_ i}^{2} - r_{start}^{2}} \right)}{{{PSN\_ length} \cdot {TP}}}}} \\ {{{PSN\_ stop}{\_ i}} = {{PSN\_ start} + \frac{\pi \left( {r_{stop\_ i}^{2} - r_{start}^{2}} \right)}{{PSN\_ length} \cdot {TP}}}} \end{matrix}$

For DVD-SL the following numbers are applicable:

TP=740·10⁻⁹ m

PSN_ref=0x30000

The PSN length per sector is determined by:

${PSN\_ length} = \frac{{Lcb} \cdot {Ncb\_ fr} \cdot {Nfr\_ ecc}}{Nsc\_ ecc}$

Substituting the following values,

Lcb=133 nm, the channel bit length

Ncb_fr=1488, the number of channel bits per frame

Nfr_ecc=416, the number of frames in an ECC block

Nsc_ecc=16, the number of sectors in an ECC block

this results in the value 5.1455 mm/sector

For BD the following numbers are applicable:

TP=320.10⁻⁹m

PSN_ref=0x100000 at r_(ref)=24 mm

Lcb=75 nm

Ncb_fr=1932

Nfr_ecc=498

Nsc_ecc=32

Accordingly, the PSN_length per sector is 2.2550 mm/sector.

Table 8 shows an example of start and stop radii and related start and stop addresses for a 24 lines, 4 mm wide label applied at radius 27 mm on a BD disc.

TABLE 8 Example of start and stop radii and related start and stop addresses for a 24 lines, 4 mm wide label applied at radius 27 mm on a BD disc. line number r_start [m] r_stop [m] PSN_start PSN_stop buffer 0 0.0270 0.0272 0x1A2800 0x1AB59D Image lines 1 0.0272 0.0273 0x1AB59D 0x1B4408 2 0.0273 0.0275 0x1B4408 0x1BD341 3 0.0275 0.0276 0x1BD341 0x1C6348 4 0.0276 0.0278 0x1C6348 0x1CF41D 5 0.0278 0.0279 0x1CF41D 0x1D85BF 6 0.0279 0.0281 0x1D85BF 0x1E1830 7 0.0281 0.0282 0x1E1830 0x1EAB6E 8 0.0282 0.0284 0x1EAB6E 0x1F3F7B 9 0.0284 0.0285 0x1F3F7B 0x1FD455 10 0.0285 0.0287 0x1FD455 0x2069FE 11 0.0287 0.0288 0x2069FE 0x210074 12 0.0288 0.0290 0x210074 0x2197B8 13 0.0290 0.0292 0x2197B8 0x222FCA 14 0.0292 0.0293 0x222FCA 0x22C8AA 15 0.0293 0.0295 0x22C8AA 0x236258 16 0.0295 0.0296 0x236258 0x23FCD4 17 0.0296 0.0298 0x23FCD4 0x24981D 18 0.0298 0.0299 0x24981D 0x253435 19 0.0299 0.0301 0x253435 0x25D11A 20 0.0301 0.0302 0x25D11A 0x266ECE 21 0.0302 0.0304 0x266ECE 0x270D4F 22 0.0304 0.0305 0x270D4F 0x27AC9E 23 0.0305 0.0307 0x27AC9E 0x284CBB 24 0.0307 0.0308 0x284CBB 0x28EDA7 buffer 25 0.0308 0.0310 0x28EDA7 0x298F60

The start of shifting out the pixels is triggered when an absolute disc angle α0 is reached. The recording of the next tracks keeps on until the stop address is passed. Stopping a few addresses earlier can prevent overwriting the same track twice at the boundary of two image lines.

The start of the next line is defined by PSN_start_i+1=PSN_stop_i.

FIG. 7 shows start and stop control for recording one image line. The actual outputting of pixel data by the VWM hardware starts only after passing the disc angle α0. Before that moment, the writing process starts with generating a bright-pixel just after passing the PSA_start. 

1. An apparatus for recording a visually detectable pattern on a record carrier, comprising a first module and a second module, the first module being arranged for: receiving information that specifies the visually detectable pattern, issuing a request to the second module to provide indications indicative for capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at least being indicative for specific properties of the record carrier, and issuing instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the received information, depending on the provided indications; and the second module being arranged for: providing the indications requested by the first module, and generating the visually detectable pattern upon the record carrier using the issued instructions.
 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the requested indications are further indicative for properties of the second module.
 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, being arranged to communicate the provided indications to a user, and to enable the user to issue instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the received information.
 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern include instructions for selection of a printing mode, the printing mode being selectable from at least applying a run length modulation complying with the specification for the run length modulation specified for machine readable data recorded on the disk, another run length modulation, and printing the pattern without run length modulation.
 5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions include an instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement.
 6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement includes at least one of printing with increased power, printing more than once and printing between tracks.
 7. A second module arranged for recording a visually detectable pattern at an optical record carrier, the second module being arranged for: receiving a request to provide indications indicative for capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at least being indicative for specific properties of the record carrier, providing the requested indications, receiving instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, and generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the issued instructions.
 8. The second module according to claim 7, wherein the requested indications are further indicative for properties of said second module.
 9. The second module according to claim 7, wherein the instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern include instructions for selection of a printing mode, the printing mode being selectable from at least applying a run length modulation complying with the specification for the run length modulation specified for machine readable data recorded on the disk, another run length modulation, and printing the pattern without run length modulation.
 10. The second module according to claim 7, wherein the instructions include an instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement.
 11. The second module according to claim 10, wherein the instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement includes at least one of printing with increased power, printing more than once and printing between tracks.
 12. A method for recording a visually detectable pattern on an optical record carrier, comprising the steps of: receiving information that specifies the visually detectable pattern; issuing a request to provide indications indicative for capabilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at least being indicative for specific properties of the record carrier; upon said request, providing the requested indications; depending on said indications, issuing instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the received information; generating the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the issued instructions.
 13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the requested indications are further indicative of media recorder-specific properties.
 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the indications are communicated to a user, and the user is thereby enabled to issue instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier using the received information.
 15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the instructions for applying the visually detectable pattern include instructions for selection of a printing mode, the printing mode being selectable from at least applying a run length modulation complying with the specification for the run length modulation specified for machine readable data recorded on the disk, another run length modulation, and printing the pattern without run length modulation.
 16. The method according to claim 12, wherein the instructions include an instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement.
 17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the instruction for carrying out a printing mode with contrast enhancement includes at least one of printing with increased power, printing more than once and printing between tracks.
 18. A computer-executable instruction stored on a computer-readable medium, which upon execution by a second module as specified in claim 7 causes said second module to provide indications indicative for possibilities of recording the visually detectable pattern at the record carrier, the requested indications at least being indicative for specific properties of the record carrier.
 19. The computer-executable instruction on a computer-readable medium according to claim 18, wherein the requested indications are indicative of properties of the second module.
 20. A computer-executable instruction stored on a computer-readable medium, which upon execution by a second module as specified in claim 7 causes said second module to select a printing mode for printing a visually detectable pattern at an optical record carrier.
 21. The instruction according to claim 20, wherein the printing mode can be selected from at least a black and white printing mode and a color printing mode. 